Cannabis in Austria

History of Cannabis in Austria

As in the rest of Central Europe, hemp has been cultivated in Austria for centuries for its fibers and seeds, which are used in textiles, rope-making, and food. The criminalization of cannabis was part of the 20th-century international movement to control narcotics: Austria enacted a narcotics law as early as 1951, then revised it in 1997 with the Act on Addictive Substances (Narcotics Act, SMG), still in effect under the name of Narcotics Act or the «Addictive Drugs Act.» This law maintains the ban on cannabis while introducing the principle of «treatment rather than punishment» for users, which allows prosecutors to drop charges for small quantities intended for personal use, subject to certain conditions.

Since then, the country has maintained a more restrictive stance than its neighbors. Germany and the Czech Republic have implemented reforms allowing for the use and cultivation of cannabis, while Austria has not adopted any legalization measures. The debate now centers on legal cannabis with low THC content: CBD flowers, food products, and cosmetics.

Cannabis Legislation in Austria

Recreational cannabis: prohibited

The production, importation, and sale of recreational cannabis are strictly prohibited under the Addictive Substances Act. Violations are punishable by administrative fines of up to 36,300 euros and, in the event of nonpayment, by imprisonment for up to six weeks. Anyone who illegally purchases, possesses, produces, transports, imports, exports, or transfers cannabis, or cultivates the plant to obtain narcotics, faces up to one year in prison or a fine of up to 360 daily fines. Large-scale trafficking is punished more severely.

Medical cannabis: authorized medications, no flowers

Only the Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety (AGES), or its subsidiaries in which it holds at least a 75 % stake, may cultivate cannabis for the manufacture of medications or for research purposes. The production, manufacture, processing, purchase, and possession of medical cannabis require specific authorization from the Ministry of Health, and its distribution is restricted to authorized recipients and pharmacies.

Patients do not have access to cannabis in its raw form: the plant is classified as a narcotic and, in principle, cannot be prescribed. There are two exceptions: cannabis extract preparations authorized as pharmaceutical products, and delta-9-THC with a purity of more than 95 %, used for compounded preparations made in pharmacies upon prescription.

CBD and Hemp Flowers

CBD in its pure form is not classified as a narcotic in Austria, and products containing the flowers or fruits of certain varieties of hemp are not considered addictive substances if their THC content does not exceed 0,3 % before, during, and after production. Their marketing, however, is subject to other legal frameworks.

With regard to food, the Ministry of Health considers food products containing CBD extracts to be novel foods (novel food) as defined by European Regulation 2015/2283. To date, no CBD extract has been authorized by the European Commission, and the EFSA has identified gaps in the data regarding CBD’s safety. As for cosmetics, the ministry classifies cannabis extracts as narcotics, which prohibits their placement on the market, even though the Commission has included naturally occurring CBD in the CosIng database—which is not legally binding on member states.

Sales of CBD flowers have been highly volatile since 2025. A judicial interpretation has classified these flowers under tobacco law: they are subject to the tobacco tax and, in principle, to the Tobacco Monopoly Act, which restricts their sale to licensed tobacco retailers. Specialty shops suffered heavy losses before a partial amendment to the Tobacco Monopoly Act established a transitional period allowing licensed shops to continue selling until the end of 2028.

Industrial hemp

Products derived from hemp varieties containing less than 0.3 % of THC may be produced and distributed without authorization under the Addictive Substances Act. Their marketing remains subject to the rules applicable to food and cosmetics, as described above.

News and Outlook

Austria remains one of the most restrictive countries in Europe, with no legalization proposals currently under discussion. Key issues to watch include the future of CBD flowers after the 2028 transition period, legal challenges to the extension of the tobacco monopoly, the potential European authorization of CBD as a novel food, and calls from industry stakeholders for a specific cannabis law. Follow our Cannabis News in Austria See below for updates to the law.